


Shades of a Shadow

by Oceanlover4712



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Mortal, Crimes & Criminals, Organized Crime, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-08
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-11-27 10:30:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20946878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oceanlover4712/pseuds/Oceanlover4712
Summary: Sometimes things happen for a reason, something you see as terrible may change someone's life for the better, or it could all come falling down. Something as simple as a smile can mean the world to a complete stranger. And though everything in the fairytales are always so black and white, life never really is, there are always two sides to every story. Nothing is ever as it seems. (One-shot)





	Shades of a Shadow

**Author's Note:**

> I apologize if this seems rushed or anything, it was for a school assignment and based on a prompt from a friend. Please review and tell me what you think!

The day started out normal enough, a sparkling sun, slight breeze, crisp clear air. The type of day that tricks you into thinking everything is gonna be great, that nothing bad could possibly happen while the birds are singin' that sweetly. Of course, people often say the worse comes when you least expect it. My name's Will and this is my take on what happened August 19th, that fateful day last Monday.

* * *

"Good mornin', Mama," I said walking into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Will." she smiled and handed me a plate of pancakes. "Any plans for today?"

I shook my head, last I checked Lou Ellen was still on vacation with her family and Cecil was off with his brothers on 'A top-secret confidential business trip' Which I didn't believe for a second, they were probably off causing trouble like they always do. Cecil would be back in a couple of days and Lou would be back by the end of the week, but until then I had nothing to do but sit and watch paint dry.

Mama sighed sympathetically, "I'm sure you'll find something to do, sugar. Go for a walk, explore, clear your head, tell me if you see anything interesting"

I considered it for a second, I had nothing better to do and if I stuck to a simple path and didn't go anywhere I don't go on a weekly basis, I probably wouldn't get lost. I smiled, "That sounds like a great idea, Mama."

"Well hurry up and eat then, so you can get on your way. And stop moping around." She demanded making a shooing motion with her hands.

"Okay, Mama." I laughed as I shoveled pancakes into my mouth. After finishing my food and cleaning my dishes, I quickly went to my room and tried to make myself look at least halfway decent. Unfortunately there seemed to be nothing I could do about my hair, Lou Ellen claimed it looked "Good in a messy kind of way" she said that most people would find my messy blond hair quite attractive, but honestly, I could care less. Despite being fifteen I wasn't really desperate to get a date, I mean if I find the right person sure, but I didn't care as of now. As long as my hair didn't look like a rat's nest I was good. I quickly slipped on my flip flops and went back into the kitchen.

"Bye, Mama," I said giving her a hug.

Mama kissed me on the cheek, "Bye, sugar. Stay safe."

I smiled at her before leaving the house and heading down the street. Almost exactly a year ago we moved out here to New York City and I still wasn't sure where I was 90% of the time. I didn't like the city much but we had to move up here from Austin, Texas because Dad found a business deal he couldn't refuse. If you asked me, I just think he was anxious to get back to his hometown. I couldn't fathom why he liked the city so much, but I suppose it's not the worst place on Earth. I didn't know what he did for his job but I hardly ever saw him despite us living in the same house.

I sighed as I pushed passed a crowd of people, there weren't many quiet places you can find in the city that never sleeps, but luckily we lived within walking distance of Central Park. I liked the park, it was pretty peaceful if you got far enough to be away from the crowds, and I actually felt like I can breath when I was there. When we first moved up to the city, before I met Lou and Cecil, I would spend hours alone just lying on the grass, gazing up at the sky and letting my thoughts wander. Before I would come out to the park every day just to escape, now it's different. My idiot friends have shown me some of the best parts of this side of the city, and I'm much more adjusted. But I still like to come here sometimes, just to breath for a while.

I was almost to the park when everything started to go downhill. It wasn't noticeable at first, just a minor annoyance that I brushed off as nothing. But within minutes I couldn't ignore the sinking feeling that was growing in my chest. Something was wrong, very, very, wrong. Before I knew it I was turning around and heading back to the house, and my unease continued to grow. Within minutes I was sprinting down the crowded streets.

It only took me 6 minutes of shoving past people and non-stop sprinting to finally get home. I skidded to a stop in front of my house breathing heavily. I didn't know what felt so wrong, nothing appeared weird on the outside. But I learned never to ignore my instincts, especially when they're this strong. Before I could contemplate what I was doing, I opened the door and barged into the house. And suffice to say, I was not prepared for the sight that greeted me.

Mama was kneeling on the floor, hands above her head, tears in her eyes. Standing a few feet away holding a gun was a boy that couldn't be any older than me, probably even younger. He had a black bandana tied around his mouth and nose so all you see were his eyes, a deep, dark, brown that seemed to suck the light out of the room. His face was framed with black messy hair that seemed to be made of the shadows themselves, somehow this made him even more terrifying. The boy's eyes snapped toward me, his gun instantly pointing at my heart.

He glared at me, "Shut the door and get on the ground." Suddenly the gun was pointed back at Mama. "Or I'll shoot."

I didn't need to be told twice, in the blink of an eye the door was closed and I was on the ground. I looked over at Mama, she was shaking with soft sobs emitting from her mouth, her hair now falling in a curtain down her face. I didn't know why this guy was here, or what he wanted, but I did know that Mama was everything to me and there was no way I was gonna let some random guy take that away.

"What do you want?" I asked looking him straight in the eye.

He looked down at me, "It's simple, really. All I want is one little necklace, just let me take it and I'll be on my way. No trouble, no pain, and no unnecessary struggle." His voice was strangely melodic, his dark eyes bore into mine as if searching my very soul for answers.

I glanced over to see how Mama was faring, her sobs had subsided but she seemed to be shaking worse than before. I didn't understand what the guy wanted, why break into someone's house and hold them at gunpoint for one little piece of jewelry? To my knowledge, Mama didn't even own any necklace other than the one she always wore around her neck.

The marauder fixed his gaze back on my mother, "Now where is it?" His voice held anger and a silent threat, but his eyes seemed to hold something akin to remorse. "I know you know what I'm talking about, a little sun pendant? Gold inlaid with silver? Ring any bells?"

Now I was certain he was talking about Mama's necklace, Dad's gift to her on their wedding day. It wasn't a terribly expensive necklace, probably only cost 'bout a hundred dollars, cheap for most things. But Mama had worn it for as long as I could remember. Why he wanted it so badly was something I just couldn't figure out.

"I- I have it." Mama's voice shook almost as much as her hands. She reached back and unclasped the necklace from around her neck, the robber walked over and took it out of her hands. He held it up to the light and inspected it before nodding his head, satisfied in what he saw.

"Thank you." His words would've felt genuine if he still didn't have a finger on the trigger. He pocketed the necklace and looked us over once more before heading for the door, his hand froze on the knob before he turned back around. "Don't call the cops, it was just one simple necklace. Calling the cops will make things much, much worse. Trust me." And just like that, he was gone.

And then to top it all off, I once again did something without any thought and ran out onto the street after him. Something just felt wrong about him, forced. And apparently my legs decided to get up and running long before my brain could even begin to comprehend what had happened. I heard Mama scream my name as I burst through the door, but it was nothing but white noise, my sole focus was on the boy. Something just felt wrong, he was only a kid and yet seems so used to holding a gun, his words were harsh, but his eyes sometimes spoke the opposite. Everything about him seemed forced like he didn't really want to do this.

He stood only a short distance from me, his eyes wide with shock before hardening into a glare. I put my hands up and walked toward him slowly, glad that his gun was now tucked away. "You don't have to do this you know."

He continued to glare at me, "Like you would know anything." His words were harsh, but I didn't back down. I didn't know what I was doing or saying, the words just seemed to pour out of me as if they had a mind of their own.

"There's always a way out of something," I spoke softly as I would to a cornered animal. "There are people who can help you."

His eyes studied me as if I was something he has never seen before, his gaze once again hardened before he turned on his heel and started walking away. He only made it a few steps before he stopped and looked over his shoulder. "You don't understand anything; go back to your mother, comfort her, and pretend none of this ever happened." And with those words he walked away, blending into the shadows like he was never there, to begin with.

* * *

Sometimes I wonder why the sun has to be so bright, why little sisters have to be so annoying, and why beds always feel more comfortable when people are demanding you get out of them. My name is Nico di Angelo, and this is my account of what happened on August 19th, the day everything changed.

* * *

My morning started out like many others before it, I woke up to Hazel yelling at me to get out of bed while simultaneously trying to wrestle her slipper out of Cerberus's mouth. After giving up on her slipper and several futile attempts to get me out of bed, she finally spoke the fatal words.

"Nico come on!" She groaned, hitting me with a pillow. "Dad says he needs to talk to you!"

Those words chilled my blood and got me up even faster than the promise of McDonald's ever could. Within less than a minute, I was dressed and heading downstairs. I could sense Hazel's confusion, but she seemed to shake it off pretty quickly.

My father was sitting at the dining table dressed in his usual suit, drinking coffee. Hazel was somehow already sitting in front of a plate of bacon and eggs, she kept sneaking little scraps under the table, much to Cerberus's delight. I could hear my step-mother, Persephone, in the kitchen cooking.

I met my father's eyes from across the room, his steely gaze threatening to break through every wall and facade I had carefully placed, exposing all my secrets to everyone who wanted them.

"Nico," His voice was flat and emotionless.

I nodded my head respectfully back in response, "Father."

"Eat your breakfast, Nico," He said, rising from his seat and grabbing his mug of coffee. "Then come and see me in my office."

I lowered my head as he walked past and only started walking toward the table once his footsteps faded away. I ignored Hazel's questioning look and started dishing bacon onto my plate, I didn't have much of an appetite but I knew I may need the energy later. Persephone came in and handed me a glass of orange juice, I refused to meet her eyes, already knowing they would be full of pity, I've always hated pity.

I finished breakfast as quickly as possible then started my way upstairs. Once I reached Father's office, I paused for a second to gather myself. Squaring my shoulders and taking a deep breath, I opened the door and walked in.

He was lounging in a chair behind his pristine mahogany desk, he glanced up as I entered and gave me the same look he does every single time I enter into this room. I already knew the routine, though each time I come in here I hope it's different. Something every kid does, like cleaning my room, or walking my dog. Unfortunately, my hope always amounted to nothing and I was sent on another of my Father's tasks. Stuff that I hated to do so, so, much. But of course, there was no way I could refuse to do them.

Father gestured to the seat in front of him, "Nico," My name was spoken as a command. "Please take a seat."

I did as I was told, I knew if I disobeyed even the simplest of orders, there would be punishment. I lifted my head and looked my father in the eyes, "What do you need me to do, Father?"

He knit his fingers together and placed them down on the desktop, "All I need you to do is steal a necklace."

I couldn't control the look of surprise that must've shown on my face, "A necklace?" It seemed so easy, so simple, I half expected him to tell me I had to kidnap, or kill, someone, their entire family, and their cat, in order to obtain this piece of jewelry.

Father nodded his head, "A necklace."

"Why?" Normally I never would've asked a question like that, but I was so genuinely confused, I couldn't help it.

Luckily he didn't seem to mind, "An old acquaintance of mine is back in town and has been testing my boundaries as of late. I just want to make sure he knows that I'm still here, that I'm not one to be messed with." He slid a piece of paper over to me, "Here's the address, along with a description of the necklace. Be quick and efficient, we don't want to cause any more trouble than it's worth."

Now this made a lot more sense to me than just randomly stealing a necklace, Father has always been the type to go to extreme measures to intimidate people. At least it seemed like a pretty easy job, the only real struggle being not drawing attention to myself during broad daylight. I studied the paper, the address wasn't too far from here, only about a twenty-minute walk, and the necklace was just a little sun pendant on a silver chain.

Father cleared his throat just as I finished memorizing the design of the pendant, I looked up and he gestured for me to leave. Once I left his office I went straight to my room to grab my stuff, just a small pistol, lock picking tool, and black bandana to obscure my face. They could all easily be tucked away in my jacket until I got to the destination, it wouldn't do well to be walking around in New York City with a gun out in the open. I went downstairs and was halfway out the door before I heard Hazel speak up.

"Nico?" she sounded confused, "Where are you going?"

I scrambled for an excuse, Hazel knew me pretty well and pairing that with the fact that I have to sneak out a lot, there's not a lot of good excuses I could use. She started looking at me funny, so I decided I better start talking. "Oh, um. I'm just, you know. Shopping?" She didn't look convinced; I mentally cursed myself for not coming up with something that actually made sense, I've always hated shopping and Hazel knew it too. I smiled in a hopefully convincing way.

Hazel just shook her head, "Whatever brother, just stay safe." She came over and have me a hug before skipping back to the couch to finish whatever weird show she was watching.

I let out a breath as I closed the door behind me. It was getting harder and harder to lie to Hazel, she was only a year younger than me and knew me inside and out, I could already tell me would be interrogating me when I got home. Unfortunately, you couldn't exactly lie to a thirteen-year-old and say you're going to Mars, or back in time to see the dinosaurs, so basically all my usual excuses were out the window. Luckily I had plenty of time to figure something out, there was no way I was ever going to tell my little sister what was really going on. That was part of my deal with Father, I do what he says without hassle, he doesn't get Hazel involved.

I expertly maneuvered the streets, going much faster than people normally could, such a skill was needed for my, or more correctly my Father's, line of work. What exactly that line of work was, I wasn't entirely sure. I knew it evolved threats, and stealing, and breaking people down until you knew every little secret about them. And though I hate to admit it, I carry a gun around for a reason. I didn't like to think about what the gun was for, or the times I'd pulled that trigger and painted the floor crimson. Even thinking about it now made me feel sick. Years and years ago my friends and I used to joke about my father, back when I still talked with them, we used to say he was scary enough to be a mob boss. But it seems we were a lot closer to the truth than we could've ever imagined.

Soon, I found myself nearing the destination. I mentally prepared myself to enter, schooling my face into a mask of indifference, making my eyes shine with silent threat, and changing my stance to one much more imposing. I sunk in the shadows a few feet from the front door and tied my bandana around my face, hiding as much as I could with it. After a few calming breathes I walked purposefully toward the door, hoping it would be unlocked if it wasn't things might get a bit more difficult. Apparently luck was with me, the door swung open easily.

"Will?" A voice sounded from somewhere within the house. It sounded like a woman's voice, possibly the owner of the necklace. I closed the door behind me and silently pulled out my gun.

"Will, is that you, sugar?" The speaker had a slight southern twang. Will must be her husband, or maybe her son.

I heard her footsteps start coming toward me, so I steadied the gun in my hands and got ready. The person stepped into my line of sight and gasped, her hands instantly going up in front of her as though they could protect her. She looked to be a woman in her early thirties, her light brown hair cut to just below the shoulders, a small scattering of freckles dusting her cheeks, her blue eyes were wide with shock. I took a small step forward and put on my best glare.

"Get down and put your hands up," I made my voice has hard and dangerous as possible. "Do exactly as I say, and there shouldn't be a problem."

She slowly started kneeling, keeping eye contact with me the entire time. I could feel the fear and uncertainty radiating off of her in waves. That was a good sign, if someone feared me, they would be more likely to cooperate. And if a person cooperated, they wouldn't end up getting hurt.

The woman was looking up at me, tears threatening to spill out of her eyes, her hands had begun to shake. When she spoke, her voice wavered like a candle in the wind. "Why are you here?"

I opened my mouth about to answer when the door suddenly burst open. Standing there was a young man looking only a little bit older than I was, he was out of breath with his eyes darting around, taking in the scene. He had golden blond hair, and eyes just like the woman kneeling on the floor, I assumed he must be Will, the person I was first thought to be.

I was startled but quickly recovered and positioned my gun at his heart, "Shut the door and get on the ground," I knew I had to act fast, if someone on the street had seen what was going on, or this Will guy decided to try and fight back, things could get ugly. My mind scrambled for an easy answer, and suddenly it clicked. I pointed my gun back at his mother, knowing he would listen now. "Or I'll shoot."

Quick as a flash, the door was closed and he was on the floor, his eyes hardened when he looked at me; when he spoke, his voice was angry and determined, "What do you want?"

I kept eye contact with him, noticing the spark of fear and quick glances he continually have his mother. "It's simple, really. All I want is one little necklace, just let me take it and I'll be on my way. No trouble, no pain, and no unnecessary struggle." I meant what I said, if I could get this necklace without hurting anyone, I would be ecstatic.

At my words, the woman seemed to shake even more, though her son just seemed confused. I forced my voice to become more threatening, the quicker I got out of here, the better it was for everyone. "Now where is it? I know you know what I'm talking about, a little sun pendant? Gold inlaid with silver? Ring any bells?"

I saw Will once again look over at his mother who to my surprise spoke and started reaching behind her neck, "I-I have it." Her hands shook, but once she got the necklace off, she held it out to me. I gratefully took it out of her hands and help it up, making sure the design lines up with the one Father showed me. I was almost surprised when it did, this has been almost to easy.

"Thank you," I was surprised in my self for saying this, but I meant it, they had made this really easy. I started walking toward the door, pocketing my gun as I went, but stopped with my hand on the knob. I found myself turning around and speaking a few parting words to them, "Don't call the cops, it was just one simple necklace. Calling the cops will make things much, much worse. Trust me." And with that, I turned back around, pulled my bandana around my neck, and walked out onto the street.

Of course, I wasn't prepared for Will to come barreling out after me only seconds later. I froze and stared at him before glaring. Just when I thought I had gotten off easy, this happens. He put his hands up in surrender before taking a few small steps forward.

"You don't have to do this you know." His words were soft and understanding, the last thing I expected to come out of his mouth.

I was taken aback but quickly masked it over with hatred, "Like you would know anything."

Despite my words, he continued on, "There's always a way out of something. There are people who can help you."

His words seemed to strike me right at my core, I had a visceral urge to run into his arms and tell him everything. Why he said that to a stranger, a stranger who just held him and his mother a gunpoint, was something I couldn't grasp. I tried my best to shake off his words before glaring at his one last time, "You don't understand anything; go back to your mother, comfort her, and pretend none of this ever happened." I turned around and fled into the shadows and streets of New York City, trying my best to pretend his words weren't repeating over and over again in my head.

That night, his words continued to haunt me. I paced around my room for hours trying to get them to leave.

_There's always a way out of something._

_There are people who can help you._

I took a shaky breath debating about what I was about to do.

_A way out_

_People who can help_

I picked up my phone, finger hovering over the call button. Finally, my finger pushed down and I held my phone to my ear. The caller picked up on the first ring, his voice seemingly wide awake despite the late hour. But I knew better, he went to bed every night at eight o'clock, eight forty-five when he was feeling wild. I resisted the urge to laugh, already hating the hot tears pooling in my eyes from hearing my self proclaimed brother's voice the first time in nearly two years.

"Nico!?"

"Hey, Sparky," My voice caught. "I know I haven't been around lately, it's a long story." I could practically hear his surprise and shock on the other side of the line, "Got any time for it?"


End file.
